The exemplary embodiments relate to the field of telephony and of computers and, more particularly, to methods and systems for providing communications screening services.
Communications has experienced explosive growth, and more growth is planned as communication access and numerous communications devices improve. This explosive growth is revolutionizing special services offered to subscribing customers. Of the special service offerings, the most relevant to this invention is the caller identification or Caller ID services. A customer or a user of a telephone (or alternate communications device) that is served by the Caller ID service is provided with a calling party's directory information. Presently available Caller ID systems provide the calling party's telephone number and billing name associated with the calling party's telephone number (if available) when an incoming communication line identification (ICLID) signal can be detected, decoded, and transmitted to the called telephone or other display device associated with the called telephone (e.g., a Caller ID device). The Caller ID services also allow a receiving party to receive directory information for other incoming communications while the receiving party's phone is used (e.g., during a conversation with another party); this service is sometimes referred to as Caller ID communication Waiting service. A customer may use the Caller ID information to make a decision whether to answer and/or to prepare for the incoming communication.
In addition, the customer may use Caller ID information to block incoming communications associated with one or more ICLID signals including specific telephone numbers selected by the customer and/or privacy screening services for unidentifiable telephone numbers of incoming communications (e.g., telemarketers). If the customer wants to selectively answer incoming communications using Caller ID information, the customer has several choices—block the communication or ignore the ringing (or other communication handling system), or until the caller hangs up. If the communication is blocked, then the customer may not have immediate notification of the incoming blocked communication to re-evaluate whether to accept the communication since circumstances for accepting the communication may change. If the customer ignores the communication and listens to unwanted ringing, then the customer may be annoyed with the repetitive noise alerting the customer of the call. In recent years, telephony providers and manufacturers have tried to provide alternate systems and methods to alert the customer of selective incoming communications that minimizes interruptions for unwanted calls.
Companies and governments are trying to prevent or otherwise filter telemarketing calls. Nearly everyone has experienced an annoying telemarketing call, and every year many people are defrauded by telemarketers. Many products, such as the TELEZAPPER™, attempt to reduce telemarketing calls (TELEZAPPER is a trademark of the Royal Appliance Manufacturing Company, www.royalappliance.com). The United States Federal Trade Commission and many state governments have created “Do Not Call” lists/registries that make it illegal for telemarketers to communication a phone number on the list.
Communications service providers also offer services that reduce telemarketing communications. BellSouth Corporation, for example, offers PRIVACY DIRECTOR® service (PRIVACY DIRECTOR® is a registered trademark of BellSouth Intellectual Property Corporation). This service tries to prevent unwanted calls, such as telemarketing calls, from ringing a subscriber's phone. This PRIVACY DIRECTOR® service does not connect a communication when the ICLID information is private. That is, the telecommunications switch recognizes when the ICLID information is marked private, so Caller ID cannot recognize the ICLID information. The PRIVACY DIRECTOR® service requires the calling party to i) unblock their telephone number or ii) announce their name. If the calling party unblocks their telephone number, then the ICLID information is delivered with the communication and the subscriber's Caller ID displays the number. If the calling party decides to announce their name, the telephone communication is routed to a media server. The media server plays an announcement that asks the calling party to record their name. The recorded name is delivered to the called party. The called party, prior to acceptance of the call, hears the recorded name of the calling party. The called party then has the option to accept the call. This PRIVACY DIRECTOR® service puts the called party in control as the recipient of the calls.
Now, however, telemarketers have learned to bypass the PRIVACY DIRECTOR service. For example, telemarketers have begun to use public communications addresses to get around the PRIVACY DIRECTOR service by unblocking their caller ID. The telemarketer's telephone number, then, is public as opposed to private. Because the telemarketer's telephone number is public, the PRIVACY DIRECTOR service does not prevent a connection to the called party. The Caller ID service displays the ICLID information, the subscriber answers the incoming communication, and the subscriber is then subjected to the telemarketer's unwanted proposal.
There is, accordingly, a need in the art for identifying and processing undesirable incoming communications. For example, consumers want a quick and convenient way of disposing of incoming telemarketing and/or unsolicited communications.